Azar Karadas
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Azar Karadas | ||
| Date of birth | 9 August 1981 | ||
| Place of birth | Nordfjordeid, Norway | ||
| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 2 1⁄2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Centre back / Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –1998 | Eid IL | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1999–2002 | Brann | 50 | (12) |
| 2003–2004 | Rosenborg | 60 | (13) |
| 2004–2007 | Benfica | 27 | (4) |
| 2005–2006 | → Portsmouth (loan) | 20 | (1) |
| 2006–2007 | → 1. FC Kaiserslautern (loan) | 11 | (1) |
| 2007–2009 | Brann | 48 | (10) |
| 2009–2012 | Kasımpaşa | 36 | (2) |
| 2012–2013 | Sogndal | 34 | (4) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 1999–2000 | Norway U21 | 33 | (12) |
| 2001–2008 | Norway | 10 | (1) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 20 November 2013. † Appearances (Goals). | |||
Azar Karadas (Turkish: Azar Karadaş, born 9 August 1981) is a Norwegian footballer who is a free agent after his contract with Sogndal expired after the 2013 season. Although he can also play as a central defender, Karadas is renowned primarily as a centre forward.
Karadas, who is of Turkish descent, has been capped ten times for Norway. He won Tippeligaen while playing for Brann and Rosenborg, and has spent time abroad in Portugal, England, Germany and Turkey.
Football career
Karadas was born in Nordfjordeid of Turkish origin, his surname meaning "Black stone" in Turkish.[1] He started his career in the small club Eid IL, moving to the professionals in 1999 with SK Brann.
On 13 March 2002, Karadas signed for Rosenborg BK, reportedly receiving death threats over this move. At his new club, his performances soon earned him a call-up to the Norwegian under-21s, and it was not long before foreign eyes focused on the him. He further enhanced his reputation by scoring two goals against the mighty Inter Milan in a 2002–03 UEFA Champions League game, a 2–2 home draw. Karadas was linked with many of Europe's major clubs, including Roda JC, Liverpool and Udinese Calcio, but Portugal's Sport Lisboa e Benfica eventually bought the 23-year old, and he joined the squad of veteran coach Giovanni Trapattoni.
After one season at Benfica, where he scored four goals (including a brace at S.C. Beira-Mar in a 3–2 success) and helped the team win the national championship after 11 years, Karadas was loaned to Premier League club Portsmouth for the 2005–06 season.[2] His spectacular volley which helped then-relegation-threatened Portsmouth earn a crucial 1–1 draw against Bolton Wanderers,[3] was the highlight of his campaign, and his only goal of the season, in 20 overall appearances.
A 16 June 2006 Norwegian press release reported that Benfica and Brann had agreed on a Karadas transfer back to Bergen. The deal was speculated to be worth GB£695,000 (€102,000), where Karadas was to give up £435,000 worth of bonuses Benfica owed him. Only his personal contract was an issue, as the player refused to give up a £350,000 compensation which Benfica had to pay him whenever Karadas was sold from the Lisbon club. Benfica believed that by selling Karadas to a bigger international club, they could receive a better transfer fee, and therefore his compensation would cost the club less than a Brann transfer would.
Despite being declared unwanted in Lisbon, Karadas returned to Benfica after his transfer to Brann fell through. His agent worked to find a new club for his cousin and on 16 August 2006, the news broke out that Karadas was in negotiations with German side 1. FC Kaiserslautern, which had been relegated to the second division after 2005–06. The clubs finally agreed with a one-year loan deal.
Karadas made his debut in German football (and its second level) on 27 August 2006 in a 2–0 home league victory over SC Paderborn 07. He started the match, but was substituted in the 61st minute. On 9 September, Karadas scored his first goal for Kaiserslautern in its 2–0 away victory over amateur side 1. FC Gera 03 in the first round of the German Cup. His first league goal came on 29 September 2006, in Kaiserslautern's 1–1 draw at SpVgg Unterhaching. Until winter break, he made ten league appearances for the club, but did not score any further goals and was also sent off with two yellow cards in derby at 1. FC Köln, which ended in a 2–2 draw, on the final day before winter break. He finished with 11 games and one goal, as Kaiserslautern ended in sixth place.
On 24 August 2007, Karadas signed a contract with Brann, for a second spell with the club.[4] In his comeback to Brann stadium, in a match against Sandefjord Fotball on 2 September, he was greeted as a hero and a banner stating "Vi hatet deg så mye, fordi vi elsker deg så høyt!" (We hated you so much, because we love you so much!).[5] That season, Brann won the Tippeligaen, with four goals in only eight appearances from the player.[6]
On 1 September 2009, Karadas signed a three-year contract with Kasımpaşa S.K. of Turkey.[7] On 27 May 2012, Karadas scored a critical goal that brought his team to Süper Lig in the play-off match against Adanaspor.[8] Before the goal he had scored only three goals in three seasons and Karadas' goal was totally unexpected to the fans. As soon as the goal scored, Karadas shared his happiness with the fans.
Karadas joined Sogndal in August 2012 on a short-term deal to the end of the 2012 season.[9] He was injured during his stay at Sogndal, and only played seven matches in Tippeligaen.[10] After being a free agent for three months, Karadas decided to play one more season for Sogndal in February 2013.[11] Sogndal wanted to keep Karadas for another season, but as they couldn't agree with Karadas on a new contract, he left the club as a free agent after the 2013 season.[12]
Career statistics
- As of 27 September 2013
| Season | Club | Division | League | Cup | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| 1999 | Brann | Tippeligaen | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| 2000 | 21 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 22 | 7 | ||
| 2001 | 23 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 27 | 8 | ||
| 2002 | Rosenborg | 23 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 27 | 6 | |
| 2003 | 22 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 27 | 8 | ||
| 2004 | 15 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 18 | 6 | ||
| 2004–05 | Benfica | Primeira Liga | 27 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 4 |
| 2005–06 | Portsmouth | Premier League | 20 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 23 | 1 |
| 2006–07 | 1. FC Kaiserslautern | 2. Fußball-Bundesliga | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1 |
| 2007 | Brann | Tippeligaen | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 4 |
| 2008 | 21 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 25 | 3 | ||
| 2009 | 19 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 23 | 6 | ||
| 2009–10 | Kasımpaşa | Süper Lig | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 |
| 2010–11 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 | ||
| 2011–12 | TFF First League | 14 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 1 | |
| 2012 | Sogndal | Tippeligaen | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 2013 | 27 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 28 | 5 | ||
| Career Total | 259 | 43 | 29 | 14 | 288 | 57 | ||
Honours
Club
- Rosenborg
- Benfica
- Brann
References
- ↑ "Biography". AzarKaradas.com.
- ↑ "Pompey snap up Benfica's Karadas". BBC Sport. 22 July 2005. Retrieved 31 August 2007.
- ↑ "Portsmouth 1–1 Bolton". BBC Sport. 1 February 2006. Retrieved 26 September 2009.
- ↑ "Ekte lidenskap har et navn" (in Norwegian). Sportsklubben Brann.
- ↑ Ellingsen, Roy (2 September 2007). "«Vi hatet deg så mye, fordi vi elsker deg så høyt!»" (in Norwegian). fotball.bt.no. Retrieved 22 July 2012.
- ↑ "Brann er årets seriemester" [Brann is the year's league champion] (in Norwegian). NRK. 22 October 2007. Retrieved 22 July 2012.
- ↑ "Kasımpaşa'da 5 imza" [Five to Kasimpaşa] (in Turkish). NTVSpor. 3 September 2009. Retrieved 22 July 2012.
- ↑ "Karadas avgjorde kaotisk opprykkskamp i Tyrkia". vg.no (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. 27 May 2012. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
- ↑ Hjetland, Geir Bjarte (27 August 2012). "Azar Karadas klar for Sogndal" (in Norwegian). NRK. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
- ↑ "Karadas ferdig i Sogndal" (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. Norwegian News Agency. 11 December 2012. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
- ↑ Skeie, Terje (27 February 2013). "Karadas klar for ny sesong i Sogndal-trøya" (in Norwegian). TV 2. Retrieved 28 February 2013.
- ↑ "Karadas ferdig i Sogndal". NRK (in Norwegian). 4 December 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
External links
- "Azar Karadas". Norsk & Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk (in Norwegian). Bergensavisen.
- Stats at N3Sport (Norwegian)
- Azar Karadas at fussballdaten.de (German)
- Azar Karadas career stats at Soccerbase
- Azar Karadas at National-Football-Teams.com